Tally another league win for Pioneer of Woodland girls basketball team

Angelica Navarro could be seen in the huddle before the fourth quarter Wednesday talking, smiling and making her teammates laugh.

It wasn't that the Pioneer High School senior guard wanted to ignore Patriots basketball coach Mark Rocha strategy for the final period of a 70-42 win over visiting Yuba City. Nor was it that she rested on the laurels of her 10-point third quarter off the bench in the Tri-County Conference contest.

"She's always cheering people on and trying to coach them," said Kiana Ginyard, one of the players Navarro distracted prior to the fourth quarter Wednesday. "She's always encouraging ... and just makes me feel better."

Added Madison Bellin, who led the Patriots with 17 points, "She just always has a positive attitude."

Coach Mark Rocha called her "a bright personality all the time. She always is positive."

The repetitive word there is "always," which is indicative of how Navarro tries to stay smiling without lapse.

"I just feel like when I'm down, the team's down -- and I like to keep my team up," she said.

"I don't like being down at all, so when I get down, the energy goes down and I don't like that. I've never liked that when I play sports. I pick myself up, but as long as I can pick my team up, I'm happy."

Rocha certainly enjoyed Navarro's third-quarter burst because he said his squad was "sloppy" until midway through the third.

"That's a big reason why we bring her off the bench," he said of Navarro, who is set to play softball at Trinity Valley Community College in Texas. "Because she's someone who's obviously capable of starting, but in basketball you need that punch coming off the bench.

"What she did tonight is the reason why she is where she's at. She plays starter minutes, she's just not out there at the opening tip."

The same goes for Alexis Mata, another important reserve who could go by the moniker "sixth man" except, as Rocha said, perhaps "sixth lady" fits better.

"Six-A and six-B," Rocha said of Navarro and Mata, who had 10 points Wednesday. "They both bring so much off the bench. They provide a spark."

The Patriots didn't get going until Yuba City edged within four points at 18-14. Rocha's timeout at 4:48 left in the half was followed by Pioneer's 11-4 run to go into the break up 29-18.

It helped that the Honkers were unable to make a vast majority of their free throws. Yuba City was 2 for 20 from the foul stripe in the second quarter alone, finishing 10 for 43 on the night.

Despite the foul trouble, Pioneer pulled away in the second quarter before using Navarro's boost in the third. Most of the Patriots starters sat that period, allowing reserves like Anjali Deol, Sofia Lopez, Chasity Colquitt, Makayla Tam and Ginyard to play. Rocha was especially impressed with Tam, who scrapped for five rebounds in the second half.

Even with the bench logging minutes, starter Shanaijah Davison came in late in the third quarter and knocked down four shots, including a long 3-pointer.

Another trey as the buzzer sounded to end the game excited the entire Pioneer squad. Sofia Lopez knocked down a final shot from beyond the arc, causing the Patriots to erupt in cheers that were sharp compared with the near-silence spread throughout the Pioneer gym in the second half.

The Patriots treated Lopez like she'd sunk a game-winner though the victory had been assured since the third quarter.

"We have so much energy and fun together," Navarro said. "We're friends."